Isn’t it startling to go grocery shopping and watch the amount add up as you move from aisle to aisle? I’m leaning heavily on my coupon book to help reduce the amount I have to pay at the checkout.
Sometimes, however, I have to move to other tactics, like buying generic items instead of popular name brands. It doesn’t make that much difference, does it? A can of diced tomatoes is a can of diced tomatoes, no matter how it’s wrapped. The generic will do just as well. It will serve the purpose in the recipe.
There are some things, however, where I just have to buy the name brand because the quality is so much better – paper products is one thing. I can’t stand using a paper product that disintegrates when it’s used!
We’ve all probably seen the advertisements for products like Brawny that claim to be tough – or Bounty – “The quicker picker-upper!” These name brands make claims that make their product different. They stand head and shoulders above the generic! They are really worth the extra cost.
What type of Christianity do you and I have? Is it generic because there’s really nothing special about it? It serves its purpose – I mean we’re on our way to heaven after all. The way we live our lives doesn’t set our Christianity apart from anyone else. We look like they look, talk like they talk, worry like they worry, live for the present like they live for the present. Is our prayer life is generic too? We pray when it’s necessary – at mealtime we bow our head and say the same little ditty we’ve been saying since who knows when. If there’s a tragedy going on, we pray about that,but for the most part, we handle the day-to-day struggles ourselves. What “brand” is our church membership? Is it generic too? We go when it’s convenient, when nothing else conflicts with the service times. We aren’t serving in any way – that would take too much commitment. No, being a member is enough.
The generic products are less expensive and accomplish nearly the same thing. I find it tempting to pull the generic off the shelf of my Christian life because it doesn’t cost as much either. But, oh, the blessings that come from getting the name brand product that does what it claims! Even more so, there are many blessings that come from having more than just generic brand in my walk with the Lord, in prayer with Him, and in church membership and service! It’s rich, sweet and full of blessings!
Don’t skimp when it comes to your walk with God; generic Christianity disintegrates faster than a wimpy paper towel!
With love,
RefreshHer 